Passin' in Reverse – The Rachel Dolezal Story

Shhh! I’ve got a secret. You want to know what it is? I am fascinated by Rachel Dolezal. I've followed her story since she was outed for passing as Black. There are those who think (including her) that what she did wasn't a big deal, and that it shouldn't over shadow the work she did. It shouldn't. My biggest problem with Rachel is her not owning that what she did was wrong. In the interviews I’ve seen, she is as slippery as a bar of wet soap. When asked if she lied while talking with the BBC, she said how can you lie about a lie.  Rachel continues to argue that race is a social construct even though we already know this. So, why lie about a lie? Does that make it less of a lie?

I was gifted her book, In Full Color, and I'm reading now. I want to understand. But it's like watching a train wreck, having gapers' block. It is for me what reality TV or Maury is for others. 

The book does provide insight into who she is, but it doesn't change what she did. Truth be told: I really don't care how she self identifies. I just want her to stop blaming other people for the situation she finds herself in now when she’s the one who lied about the lie and brought us all to this place. 

So captivated by Rachel that she inspired me to pen a poem.  It’s featured in my coming up book--Unzipped—Exposing the Naked Truth which I co authored with Rick Allison--the irony of that! Listen to her interview. Read my poem. And tell me what you think about this white woman passin’ for Black.

 

Playing the White Card

When I first heard the story

 of a White woman passin’ for Black

I must admit, I was taken aback

I mean siding with the oppressed

 instead of the oppressor

Who in her right mind does that?

So as I learned about this White Chick

Whose hair required a pick

Who darkened her skin

And tried to fit in

She masqueraded in Black face

Trying to steal a place

In the Black race

Thought if she wore a costume

We’d all assume

That she was down

Because she’s light brown

So, yea at first I was like what’s the big deal?

So, what if she ain’t Black for real

If she wants the burden let her have it

Til I rolled it around in my mind a bit

And thought to myself ain’t this some ish

After watching a couple of interviews

I shook my head thinking,

This woman must think we’re some fools

Yes, she was an activist

And an African-American studies teacher too,

But the real struggles of Black womanhood

She doesn’t have a clue

For us, it’s more than a costume

Since birth, these roles we’ve assumed

You see the legacy of our ancestors

Is in our DNA

And this Rachel Dolezal wants to play?

To have felt the master’s whip on her back

And lived a life of hardship and pain

And have to pick herself up again and again

Rachel had a 10-year fantasy—

That’s all

Because when it comes to being a real

Black woman

She dropped the ball

She has no clue

What it’s really like to stand in our shoes

You know what they say:

Once you go Black you never go back

But for Rachel, if life gets too hard

Unlike us, she has an option of playing

 The White Card